Golf glove

ABSTRACT

A pair of golf gloves is disclosed for training a user how to properly grip a golf club. A first glove may be worn on the left hand and a second glove may be worn on the right hand, each glove has a pattern region. When the golfer properly grips a club the patterns on the gloves cooperate to provide visual confirmation. A pair of golf gloves having alignment indicia is also disclosed. A first indicia on a first glove provides an aligning target for a second indicia on a second glove. The golfer uses the indicias to align the hands in a proper club grip. A golf glove is also disclosed having a thumb region secured to an index finger region to prevent a golfer from separating the incdex finger and the thumb when gripping a golf club.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates to golf gloves and moreparticularly relates to golf gloves that aid a golfer in obtaining aproper grip.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] The sport of golf has become increasingly popular over the yearswith over three million new players joining each year. These new golfer,and existing golfer, purchase expensive clubs and training aids and takelessons from golf professionals in an effort to reduce their score. Oneof the most important requirements in achieving a lower score is aproper grip. A golfer must properly position his/her hands on the handleof the golf club in a precisely desired orientation in order to attainthe desired result when the golf club is swung correctly to hit the golfball. It is well understood that a slight rotation of either or bothhands in either direction around the axis of the golf club handleaffects the direction of the ball when struck.

[0003] Many golfers wear gloves in order to more securely hold the golfclub. Some prior art golf gloves have been made with features such aspockets or protrusions sewn onto the glove surface to assist golfers inproperly positioning their hands. None of the prior art golf gloves haveprovided visual feedback to the golfer when both hands are properlypositioned on the club.

[0004] What is needed is a golf glove that allows a golfer to quicklyand easily determine when a proper grip is obtained.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0005] In accordance with the present invention, a pair of golf glovesis provided having first and second pattern regions wherein the patternregions provide visual feedback to a user when a proper two-handed golfgrip is obtained.

[0006] In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, apair of golf gloves is provided having a first glove with a firstindicia located on a thumb portion and a second glove with a secondindicia located on a palm portion, the first indicia providing a targetfor the second indicia to assist the user in obtaining a proper grip ofa golf club.

[0007] In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, agolf glove is provided having a palm portion and a plurality ofelongated opening extending from the palm to receive the fingers andthumb of a golfer, one of the openings sized to allow both an indexfinger and the thumb to reside.

[0008] In accordance with yet another aspect of the present invention, agolf glove is provided having a palm portion and a plurality ofelongated opening extending from the palm to receive the fingers andthumb of a golfer, an opening for the index finger being secured to anopening for the thumb.

[0009] In accordance with even another aspect of the present invention,a golf glove is provided having a palm portion, a back portion, and aplurality of elongated opening extending from the palm and back portionsto receive the fingers and thumb of a golfer, wherein independentmovement of the thumb relative to the index finger is restricted

[0010] The above and other objects, feature, and advantages of thepresent invention will be apparent in the following detailed descriptionthereof when read in conjunction with the appended drawings wherein thesame reference numerals denote the same or similar parts throughout theseveral views.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011]FIG. 1 is a palm side view of a first embodiment golf gloveconsistent with the present invention;

[0012]FIG. 2 is a back side view of a first embodiment golf gloveconsistent with the present invention;

[0013]FIG. 3 is a palm side view of a second embodiment golf gloveconsistent with the present invention;

[0014]FIG. 4 is a back side view of a second embodiment golf gloveconsistent with the present invention;

[0015]FIG. 5 is a top view showing a proper golf grip;

[0016]FIG. 6A is a top view showing an improper golf grip;

[0017]FIG. 6B is a top view showing an improper golf grip;

[0018]FIG. 6C is a top view showing an improper golf grip;

[0019]FIG. 7 is a palm side view of a third embodiment golf gloveconsistent with the present invention;

[0020]FIG. 8 is a palm side view of a fourth embodiment golf gloveconsistent with the present invention; and

[0021]FIG. 9 is a tutorial on how to properly grasp a golf club.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0022]FIGS. 1 and 2 show the palm side and backside of a golf glove 100wearable on the right hand of a golfer and has a plurality of fingerportions for the pinky, ring, middle and index fingers and a thumbportion coupled to a palm portion 102. The glove is preferably made ofleather and available in a variety of sizes and colors. The golf gloveis of general conventional construction. The glove 100 may have indicia104 for indicating to the user the preferred location for the shaft ofthe golf club to obtain a proper grip. When glove is worn by the user,and the user's fingers are cupped in order to receive the shaft of thegolf club, the indicia become substantially straight lines due to thecurvature of the fingers. The indicia 104 may be died into the glovematerial, printed on the surface of the glove material, or may be anadditional piece of material sewn into the glove.

[0023] The glove 100 may also have a first indicia 106 near the base ofthe thumb portion for aligning with a second indicia 206 on a thumbportion on a left glove 200 (see FIG. 4). The indicia 106 may be diedinto the glove material or printed on the surface of the glove material,or may be an additional piece of material sewn into or adhered to theglove. The additional piece of material may include, but is not limited,to a hook and loop fastener or a button. Preferably, the indicia 106does not present a depression or a protuberance, as golf gloves withdepressions or protuberances may not be used legally in some PGAsponsored tournaments.

[0024] The glove 100 may also have a first pattern region 108 thatextends to the backside of the glove as shown in FIG. 2. The firstpattern region 108 is described in more detail below in FIG. 5. Theglove may be made of plurality of smaller pieces that are joinedtogether at seams 110. The pattern region does not have to correspond tothe seams, but may. The glove is shown with the pattern region as adarker color than the remaining portions of the glove (white), but thecolors may be swapped and other colors are useable.

[0025]FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 show the palm side and backside respectively ofa golf glove 200 wearable on the left hand of a golfer. The glove has aplurality of finger portions for the pinky, ring, middle and indexfingers and a thumb portion coupled to a palm portion 202. The glove 200may have indicia 204 for indicating to the user the preferred locationfor the shaft of the golf club to obtain a proper grip. The indicia 204may be died into the glove material, printed on the surface of the glovematerial, or may be an additional piece of material sewn into or adheredto the glove.

[0026] The glove may also have an indicia 206 on a thumb portion foraligning with the indicia 106 on the right glove 100 (see FIG. 1). Theindicia 206 is shown between the first and second knuckle on the thumb.The indicia 206 may be died into the glove material or printed on thesurface of the glove material, or may be an additional piece of materialsewn into or adhered to the glove. Preferably, the indicia 206 does notpresent a depression or a protuberance. The precise location of thefirst indicia 106 and the second indicia 206 can be moved from theposition shown, without departing from the present invention, as long asthe indicia are aligned when a proper grip is achieved.

[0027] The glove 200 may also have a second pattern region 208 thatextends to the backside of the glove.

[0028] To properly use the glove, the golfer first aligns the indicia204 on the left glove with the shaft of the club and grasps the club.The golfer then aligns indicia 106 on the right glove with the indicia206 on the left glove and grasps the club. The user then adjusts hisgrip until he can only see the first and second pattern regions.

[0029]FIG. 5 shows a top view of a proper golf club grip of a userwearing the gloves of the present invention. This is the view the golfersees when his hands are properly positioned on the shaft of a golf club.Notice that the golfer only sees the first and second pattern regions(no white is showing) when the club is properly gripped.

[0030] FIGS. 6A-6C show an improper golf club grip of a user wearing thegloves of the present invention. Notice in FIG. 6A that the golfer'sright hand is not properly positioned on the club and the golfer can seean area 602 (that is not part of the first or second pattern region)between the gloves and a region 604 (that is also not part of the firstor second pattern region) along the side of the left glove.

[0031] Notice in FIG. 6B that the golfer's right hand is rotated toomuch counter-clockwise about the longitudinal axis of the shaft and thegolfer can see an area 606 (that is not part of the first or secondpattern region).

[0032] Notice in FIG. 6C that the golfer's left hand is rotated too muchclockwise about the longitudinal axis of the shaft and the golfer cansee an area 608 (that is not part of the first or second patternregion).

[0033] The precise location of the first and second pattern regions wasdetermined by having a golf professional, with a known proper grip, weara pair of gloves and then cover the area viewable from the golfer'sperspective with an ink or paint. Once the pattern region is determinedfor a particular glove size, it can be duplicated and mass produced.Proper patterns for other size gloves can be determined with a similarprocess.

[0034] Although the gloves have been described for right-handed golfer,a mirror image design utilizing a similar process can be use forleft-handed golfers.

[0035] The gloves can be used for at least the three most popular handgrips; 10-finger; overlap; and interlock.

[0036] FIGS. 7 shows a golf glove 700 wearable on the right hand of agolfer and FIG. 8 shows a golf glove 800 wearable on the left hand of agolfer. The gloves have a plurality of finger portions for the pinky,ring, middle, and index fingers and a thumb portion coupled to a palmportion 702/802. The thumb portions 704/804 are secured to the indexfinger portions 706/806 to restrict independent movement of the thumbrelative to the index finger. The glove can be made with a singleopening to house both the index finger and the thumb. Alternatively, theglove can be made with discrete openings for the index finger and thethumb and the two openings can be joined together. The discrete openingscan be sewn or adhered together. The openings can be joined at a singlepoint 710/810 near the end of the thumb portion or at a plurality ofpoints along a line 714/814 from a point near the base 712/812 of theindex finger and the thumb towards the end of the thumb. Preferably theopenings can be joined at least from the first knuckle to the secondknuckle.

[0037] Various feature disclosed may be combined without departing fromthe present invention.

[0038] It should be understood that, while the present invention hasbeen described in detail herein, the invention can be embodied otherwisewithout departing from the principles thereof, and such otherembodiments are meant to come within the scope of the present inventionas defined in the following claims.

I claim:
 1. A pair of golf gloves comprising: a first pattern region ona first glove; and a second pattern region on a second glove, the firstand second pattern region providing visual feedback to a user when aproper two-handed golf grip is obtained.
 2. The golf gloves of claim 1,further comprising a first indicia located on a thumb portion of thefirst glove and a second indicia located on a palm portion of the secondglove, the first indicia providing a target for the second indicia toaid a golfer in obtaining a proper grip.
 3. The golf gloves of claim 2,wherein the indicia and the second indica are flush with theirrespective surfaces.
 4. The golf gloves of claim 1, wherein the whereina thumb portion is secured to a finger portion to restrict independentmovement of the thumb relative to the index finger.
 5. The golf glovesof claim 1, wherein the first pattern region and the second regioncomprise a solid color.
 6. The golf gloves of claim 1, wherein the firstpattern region and the second region comprise a dark color and theremainder of the glove is a lighter color.
 7. The golf gloves of claim1, wherein the golfer can only see the first and second pattern regionsof the gloves when a proper two-handed golf grip is achieved.
 8. A pairof golf gloves comprising: a first glove having a first indicia locatedon a thumb portion; and a second glove having a second indicia locatedon a palm portion, the first indicia providing a target for the secondindicia to aid a golfer in obtaining a proper grip, the indicia beingflush with its respective surface.
 9. A golf glove comprising; a palmportion; and a plurality of elongated opening extending from the palm toreceive the fingers and thumb of a golfer, one of the openings sized toallow both an index finger and the thumb to reside.
 10. The golf glovesof claim 9, further comprising a first indicia located on a thumbportion of the first glove and a second indicia located on a palmportion of the second glove, the first indicia providing a target forthe second indicia to aid a golfer in obtaining a proper grip.
 11. Thegolf gloves of claim 10, wherein the indicia and the second indica areflush with their respective surfaces.
 12. A golf glove comprising; apalm portion; a back portion; a plurality of elongated opening extendingfrom the palm and back portions to receive the fingers and thumb of agolfer, wherein independent movement of the thumb relative to the indexfinger is restricted
 13. The golf gloves of claim 12, further comprisinga first indicia located on a thumb portion of the first glove and asecond indicia located on a palm portion of the second glove, the firstindicia providing a target for the second indicia to aid a golfer inobtaining a proper grip.
 14. The golf gloves of claim 13, wherein theindicia and the second indica are flush with their respective surfaces.15. A golf glove comprising: a palm portion; and a plurality ofelongated opening extending from the palm to receive the fingers andthumb of a golfer, an opening for the index finger being secured to anopening for the thumb.